Hamas Attack Draws Cheers from Extremists, Spurs Antisemitism and Conspiracies Online

As the deadly assaults on Israel continue, extremists, antisemites and conspiracy theorists are flocking to online spaces to cheer for Hamas, threaten further violence against Israel and Jewish people worldwide and float absurd, often antisemitic conspiracies about the “real” perpetrators or cause of the terror attacks.

Extremists Celebrate the Attack on Israel

Some white supremacists are celebrating Hamas’s attack on Israel. Chairman of the antisemitic National Justice Party (NJP) Mike Penovich posted on Telegram, “Hats off to the Palestinians for taking bold and courageous action in their own cause and showing us that the Zionist regime is not invincible.” He called out right-wing nationalists who are not actively celebrating the attack, demanding, “Who’s paying you? Who are you afraid of? Is the Overton window shifting enough for you yet?”

Nathan Damigo, the founder of the now defunct white supremacist group Identity Evropa, wrote on his Telegram channel, “From the river to the sea Palestine will be free!” and “Hamas really took #BantheADL to the next level.” Meanwhile, a leader of the white supremacist New Jersey European Heritage Association complained that the attack will result in “a new batch of migrants coming to America. Privileged supremacist Jews fleeing chaos they provoked like the cowardly rats they are. They will immediately jump to the head of the line.”

Jon Minadeo, the leader of the antisemitic Goyim Defense League (GDL), posted on Gab “PALESTINIANS ARE KILLING THE SYNAGOGUE OF SATAN. God bless these brave men of Palestine.” While GDL supporters in the network’s telegram channel noted their happiness with posts such as, “Woke up to kikes in Israel getting their comeuppance. Life is good.” and “What a wonderful Shabbot [sic] today goys!”

Communications channels associated with the Islamic State (IS) are likewise seeing calls for violence against Israel and its supporters. Although IS views Hamas as theologically illegitimate, IS writers have expressed joy at seeing the Hamas attacks on Israel. One IS supporter posted on Telegram: “The Operation in Palestine today is just another” of Allah’s wonders. Other narratives from jihadist spaces characterize Hamas terrorists as martyrs, hope for additional casualties and see the conflict as a sign of end times to come.

Antisemitism Spikes on Social Media

In the wake of the attack on Israel, antisemitic rhetoric spiked across social media platforms, particularly on extremist favorites 4chan and Telegram. This includes a rise in the use of phrases that call for violence against Jews, Israelis and Zionists.

The ADL Center on Extremism continuously monitors violent language and threats against the Jewish community/Israel in extremist spaces. While there is always an undercurrent of this hateful rhetoric, in the 18 hours since this conflict began, this type of rhetoric has spiked significantly.

Our data show extremists appear to be emboldened by the Hamas attack, and have increased their violent rhetoric, posting hate filled messages and calls for further aggression against Israel and its supporters. On October 6, 2023, the day before the attack, there were 59 Telegram messages from extremists threats and calls for violence against Jews, Israelis and Zionists. However, in the first 18 hours of October 7, 2023, this number surged to 347 Telegram messages, marking an alarming increase of approximately 488 percent.

There are also posts in which antisemites and white supremacists discuss hopes of similar future violence against Jews in America, using antisemitic slurs and white supremacist terms including “day of the rope” to refer to the attacks against Israel.

Antisemitic & Anti-Israel Conspiracy Theories Surface Online

By mid-day on October 7, 2023, a range of antisemitic and anti-Israel conspiracy theories were circulating.

Some claimed that Hamas is controlled opposition directed by Israel. “Shadow of Ezra,” a large QAnon related Telegram channel, posited that the attack is a false flag attack orchestrated by Mossad designed to give Israel the opportunity to grab more land and create “Greater Israel,” reflecting a classic antisemitic conspiracy theory.

Others believe that such a surprise attack by Hamas is unlikely or even impossible, citing Israel’s extensive intelligence networks, and claiming that Israel knew about the attack ahead of time but chose not to act preemptively to justify the "ethnic cleansing" of Palestinians. White supremacist Nick Fuentes pushed this narrative on Telegram, writing that Israel’s intelligence failure “is a little suspicious in light of how the Likud government will benefit politically from this crisis both domestically and internationally.”

On X, a popular antisemitic influencer who goes by Lucas Gage posted several antisemitic and anti-Zionist conspiratorial claims. In one post, he alleged that Israel does not deserve sympathy because it helped coordinate the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, a common antisemitic conspiracy theory. In another post, Gage blamed "our Zionist Occupied Govt," an antisemitic reference to the U.S. government.

Antisemitic conspiracy theorist David Icke also discussed the attack on X, alleging that Netanyahu and Hamas are "owned by the Global Cult" and that the attacks are another step towards World War 3.